Flying Ducks!!!

I don't know whether I'll manage it but I aim to keep to a single species today… mallard ducks. They were having a whale of a time on the ice at Falmer Pond, and with some decent light it was a perfect opportunity to capture some winter flying ducks…

Landings weren't always perfect though!

And heck, I do want to show a few other birds in the snow so here they are….

A pied wagtail:

And my favourite jackdaw 😉

And finally, a black-headed gull wearing the summer fashions.

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Camera note: all shots taken with the Canon 7D and EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L USM IS lens.

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This Post Has 12 Comments

  1. RobinL

    7 Feb 2012

    Words, great captures! That third shot is stunning! I love the look of surprise when they land on the ice and keep going or tip over like that!

  2. cakkleberrylane

    7 Feb 2012

    WOW! Brilliant shots! And yes, the third shot is amazing! It must be a challenge to land on ice!

  3. SittingFox

    8 Feb 2012

    The world's most optimistic gull! Actually I saw one that was going a bit dark as well.

    Love the shot of the accidental skater!

  4. serola

    8 Feb 2012

    Amazing duck shots :hat:

  5. derWandersmann

    8 Feb 2012

    Mallards are good flyers, for ducks of their size, and they seem to enjoy the "play" aspect of flying.

  6. Words

    8 Feb 2012

    Sami, thanks!

  7. Words

    8 Feb 2012

    Lois, thanks! They do surprisingly well coming down to land on ice, but as you can see they don't always quite manage it.

  8. Words

    8 Feb 2012

    Adele, there's one gull there with completely black/brown head. Very striking but it tends to keep at a distance from the camera. It might be embarrassed. :whistle: The ducks were fun. I was lucky with the timing of the 'skater'.

  9. Words

    8 Feb 2012

    dW, they were mainly interested in the food that some people were throwing on the ice, but too lazy (or greedy) to walk all the way to get it.

  10. Words

    8 Feb 2012

    Robin, thanks! I took a lot of shots to get these. Someone was feeding them so there was 'duck traffic' back and forth for quite a while. The difficulty was getting relatively clear shots without too much going on in the background.

  11. derWandersmann

    9 Feb 2012

    For awkward landings, albatrosses can't be beat … they resemble helicopter accidents.

  12. Words

    9 Feb 2012

    dW, I can believe it. They're really not designed for walking.

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